The Honey Badger's days at LSU are done. The Tiger's All American cornerback and Heisman finalist Tyrann Mathieu has been dismissed from the team because of a failed drug test, a source close to Mathieu said Friday.

RUSTY COSTANZA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNELSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu says he is 'working every day' on handling the hype around his abilities.

LSU Coach Les Miles made the announcement of the dismissal at a hastily called noon press conference, but he would not elaborate on the nature of the infraction.

"This is a very difficult day for our team," Miles said. "We lose a quality person, teammate and contributor to the program. However, with that being said, we have a standard that our players are held to and when that standard is not met, there are consequences.

"It's hard because we all love Tyrann. We will do what we can as coaches, teammates, and friends to get him on a path where he can have success. We are going to miss him."

Mathieu was a college sensation who took on the Honey Badger persona during the Tigers 13-0 run to the BCS championship game last season. He regularly made big plays on defense, including two fumble returns for touchdowns, and had two punt returns for touchdowns late in the season.

But the 5-feet-9, 175-pound Mathieu also ran afoul of a drug issue with two teammates last season. Mathieu, running back Spencer Ware and cornerback Tharold Simon were suspended for the Auburn game after testing positive for synthetic marijuana.

Miles declined to elaborate what the violation was other than team and school policies. He said he felt Mathieu still had a chance to rectify the matter personally.

"We have a simple policy here of behavior," Miles said. "Consequences are pretty (well) spelled out and defined. We did what we could do but Tyrann is no longer on our team. He violated team policies.

"For Ty, it's an opportunity for him to redirect. He's still got a bright future. I think he can really accomplish all the goals he set for himself. It's not going to be easy, but it's going to be doable."

Mathieu, who would have been a junior this season, was likely destined to skip his senior season and apply to the NFL draft next April. Now his options are more limited. He would have to sit out if he transfers to a Football Bowl Subdivision (1-A) team but could play immediately if he is accepted as a transfer at a Football Championship Subdivision (1-AA) school or lower.

The source said Mathieu is considering McNeese State, Jackson State and Prairie View A&M among others, but has ruled out Southern. The source said he wants to get out of Baton Rouge.

Miles and LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva seemed somber and spoke of their disappointment. Both said the school worked with Mathieu constantly to help him cope with fame.

"It's heartbreaking, absolutely heartbreaking," Alleva said. "He's a good kid but he broke the rules and he has to pay a price. We do everything we can to help these kids."

Said Miles: "He was a quality, quality guy. He had behavior issues. The overview of his time with us is positive."

In two seasons, the New Orleans native and St. Augustine alum played in 26 games and recorded 133 tackles with 16 for loss and four interceptions. He holds the LSU career record for forced fumbles with 11 and is third in recoveries with eight. He also averaged 15.6 yards on 27 punt returns.

He paired with Morris Claiborne to become the first teammates named All America at cornerback by the Associated Press. He was SEC Defensive Player of the Year and captured the Chuck Bednarik Award as the top defensive player in the nation. He finished fifth in the Heisman balloting and garnered 34 first-place votes.

His image far exceeded his stats last year when a video of his big plays was matched up with a humorous soundtrack from a Youtube video about the honey badger. That's a reckless, scavenging and fearless mammal that creates havoc, including tearing into beehives to eat larvae and honey.

The legend of the honey badger grew throughout the year and climaxed when he electrified Tiger Stadium with a 92-yard, game-changing punt return for a touchdowns to help beat Arkansas while playing safety for the first time.

The next week, he scored on a 62-yard punt return and set up another touchdown with a 47-yarder as LSU rallied past Georgia. That set the stage for an orgy of local and national media stories about Mathieu's upbringing and the fact that his natural father was in prison.

Mathieu's exit will hurt the Tigers, who are thin in depth in the secondary. The next cornerback in line is redshirt freshman Jalen Collins with true freshman Jalen Mills also battling for a position. In the punt return game, Miles said Odell Beckham Jr. would get a shot at taking Mathieu's place.

"We have some (other) good players," Miles said. "We have some guys in the back of this room that are similar built, similar cut. The challenge then will be for them to see if they can step in."

LSU players were not available for comment but several posted reactions on their Twitter accounts in support of Mathieu. "Don't nobody understand the life of an athlete but ATHLETES!!!! #enough," wrote offensive lineman, and Mathieu's former St. Augustine teammate, Jonah Austin.

"God allows things to happen for a reason. Don't judge someone just because they sin differently from you," wrote offensive guard La'El Collins.

Mathieu will be missed as much for his statistics as the intangibles he brought. Teammates praised him for his leadership, energy and aggressive play. It rubbed off on the rest of the defense which played with a swagger as a result.

"That energy he gave us was important," defensive end Sam Montgomery said. "It was a boost to get us where we needed to go."